


The Tales We'll Tell

by orphan_account



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: AU, Eventual Romance, F/M, M/M, MWPP, Marauders Friendship, Marauders' Era, Multi, Some angst, eventual SB/RL and LE/JP
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-22
Updated: 2018-08-01
Packaged: 2019-05-27 02:03:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,735
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15014243
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Remus Lupin is thrown into the wizarding world after being raised in a muggle orphanage– see his tale of friendship, romance and heartbreak– all that teen stuff.





	1. Before First Year

It was hardly uncommon for the people residing in Limehouse, London to witness a young boy emerge onto the street with shaven hair and a noticeably worn navy-blue shirt, looking rather malnourished and with a recognisably animalistic gleam in their eye. For this reason, it caused no disturbance when a boy of around eleven years old darted out onto the street and took off at full speed, followed closely by three other boys, all dressed in the same signature navy-blue shirt.

  
Inevitably, the three notably larger boys caught up to the other and backed him right into a corner. He looked around desperately, well aware that it was impossible for him to attempt to take on these boys if he wanted to make it out alive.

  
“You know what my dad used to say about thieves?” The oldest and nastiest of the boys snarled.

  
“What, before he took out your mum and offed himself?” He replied, immediately regretting his decision. Smart talk helped no-one in Bowley’s Orphanage for Boys– he thought he’d have learnt that much over the past five years.

  
The boy in front of him let out a distinctly animalistic noise.  
“Remus Lupin, I’m going to kill you!” He growled, his voice sounding more dangerous with every syllable.

  
Remus had a tendency to find himself in situations similar to these more often than he would like. Truthfully, he was mostly to blame for this; he was no stranger to stealing things when he either felt he needed them, or he felt the victim of his thievery deserved it. The boy threatening his life on this evening happened to have beaten up someone who had saved his life on more than one occasion. Being eleven years old and a foot shorter than the other boy, Remus decided the best retaliation had been to raid his supply of cigarettes and alcohol. As he watched the fist of the other boy travel towards his face, Remus wondered if that had been the best course of action.

Half an hour later, Remus limped his way back to Bowley’s. He had a high pain tolerance, unsurprisingly. After all, once a month he would turn into a savage beast and tear himself to shreds in frustration. No one ever asked about his scars and his very fresh cuts. They all lived in an orphanage, no one was in any position to judge the state of others. They’d all been abandoned, as Miss Reeder reminded them as often as she could. No one wanted them.

“Lupin!” Miss Reeder shrieked as he entered the building, thoroughly exhausted.

He stood still and waited for her to continue, hardly having the energy to open his mouth.

“In here. Visitor,” she said shortly, gesturing to her office.

Remus followed her into the small room feeling extremely confused. Who could possibly be visiting him for the first time in his six years here? He briefly imagined his mother or father had come back to find him but the idea was almost laughable. He nearly actually laughed out loud as he saw who was visiting him. A tall man in a pointy purple hat and what appeared to be a sort of gown with stars embroidered on it looked up at him with a warm smile. Finally, he’d lost his mind.

“Good evening, Mr Lupin. Miss Reeder, would you give us a few minutes together?” The old man said in a deep voice which appeared to be dripping with wisdom and gave Remus the feeling that this man knew something no one else knew.

  
Miss Reeder had a disgruntled look on her face but still managed to nod politely and exit the room, leaving the Remus alone with someone who looked disturbingly like a figment of his imagination but was definitely not. Remus stared at the odd man for a couple of minutes before becoming impatient and deciding to be the one to talk first.

“Who are you?” He asked with a hint of aggression in his voice. Understandably, he had a deep distrust for adults as well as a certain amount of fear.

“My name is Albus Dumbledore,” the man replied calmly.

“As if that answers anything. Why are you here? I’ve been here everyday for the past six bloody years of my life and had not one visitor. Why now?” Remus was becoming increasingly angry and he wasn’t quite sure why.

“I am here to tell you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Mr Lupin. Do you know about the magical world?” He continued to speak in that irritatingly calm voice, his eyes tearing into the depths of Remus’s soul.

“Little bit. Dad had one of them wands. That’s all I remember,” Remus said shortly.

“Of course, of course. You will have plenty of time to learn the many wonders of the wizarding world. At Hogwarts, you will study magic alongside fellow witches and wizards. I understand it will take time to adjust and I urge you to ask questions to anyone around you if ever you need answers.” He paused, as if waiting for Remus to speak, but continued when he gave no reply. “I am aware of your lycanthropy and will make the necessary arrangements. I firmly believe no-one should be denied an education and will do everything I can to ensure you get one.”

“My what?” Was all Remus said.

“Lycanthropy. You are a werewolf, I understand this hasn’t been taken care of too well in this home and we will strive to maintain your utmost comfort at Hogwarts,” Albus Dumbledore said kindly.

  
“Is it a boarding school?” Remus asked curiously.

“Indeed.”

“I’ll go. I’ll go right now.” Remus decided spontaneously. No place could be worse than Bowley’s. “Rather be any place but here.” He explained shortly upon seeing the old man’s surprised expression.

“Very well, Mr Lupin–“

“Stop calling me that,” Remus said simply, vaguely aware that he was coming across rather rude to this Dumbledore fellow.

“Very well, Remus. If you’re quite sure, here are you books and necessary supplies.”

Dumbledore waved his wand and a large stack of books as well as what looked like a cauldron and some similar gowns to the one he was wearing appeared in front of him. Remus was stunned. This was the largest amount of belongings he had ever had and it felt wonderful.  
He tried to thank Dumbledore but found himself speechless. This was the first time an adult had shown any kindness to him since his mother, and he could hardly remember her. Her last act of abandoning him seemed rather unkind, in hindsight.

“You remind me of a student I taught many years ago, Remus.” Remus looked up, interested. “Unfortunately, he went down a very dark path indeed. Your stories start in the same place, but they needn’t progress the same. I know you have excellent abilities within you, and I hope you exercise them the same way.”

“Thank you, sir.” Remus responded, feeling a greater sense of respect for this man.

“Do not thank me, Remus. Actions speak louder than words, make me proud.” He stood up, reminding Remus of just how large and imposing he was, and reached into his pocket. “Your father left this wand behind, I see it will suit you very well. 10 inches, vine, unicorn hair. No using it outside of school until you are 17. I hope to see you seen.” And with that, he left. He gave no time for Remus to say goodbye or to thank him. Remus was glad for that; he wouldn’t have known what to say.

  
Shortly after that rather confusing exchange, Miss Reeder marched in and placed all of his new belongings in a locked cupboard, where they would gather dust for the next fortnight.

 

 

  
Two weeks had never gone so quickly, Remus thought, standing in Kings Cross with a ticket clutched in his hand, a very worn trunk beside him, and no idea what to do or where to go. He looked around frantically, the clock reminding him he had ten minutes to board the train. The nonexistent train, on the nonexistent platform, Remus reminded himself. He’d been rather confused after seeing platform 9 ¾ on his ticket but his suspicions had only been confirmed when he’d arrived at the station which very clearly did not have a platform 9 ¾.

“I can hardly believe you’re going to Hogwarts already, James. It seems like only yesterday you were racing around on your tiny toy broom,” said a woman with shockingly bright red hair and a kind smile.

  
Oh, what the hell? Remus thought, marching over to the woman and her family.

“Excuse me,” he started as politely as he could, “do you know how I could get to platform nine and three quarters?” Remus wouldn’t describe himself as shy, but he kept himself to himself, so it was rather out of the ordinary for him to approach a stranger like this.

“Of course, darling. You’ll just need to walk straight at that wall right there. It’s James’ first time here, too. Just follow him, there you go,” she said to him in a motherly tone.

Against all his better instincts, Remus walked straight into the wall between platforms 9 and 10 and, to his surprise, emerged into another platform. Platform 9 and ¾. It was rather extraordinary. A scarlet train stood majestically in front of him, steam blowing out of it. All around him there were families hugging and kissing their children, preparing for a few months away from them. Remus felt a small pang of jealousy, wishing his parents– or anyone– were there to see him off.

“James Potter.” A messy haired boy held out his hand for Remus to shake and he realised this was the son of the lovely lady who had helped him.

“Remus Lupin.” Remus took his hand and shook it firmly, maintaining eye contact, as Miss Reeder had taught him. He noticed James’ handshake was equally as good and perhaps well-practised.

“Are you alone, Remus?” His mother asked sympathetically.

“Yes. Miss Reeder dropped me off, but she’s gone now.” He explained, trying his best to remain polite.

“Oh, well. You boys need to get on the train now, come on, off you go. I love you, James, remember to write!” She hugged James and gave Remus a kind pat on the back, after passing James onto his rather intimidating father.

Finally, the Potters finished their emotional goodbyes and Remus boarded the train alongside James. He had planned to keep to himself at this school, but decided having a few people to talk to occasionally would be alright.

“Hiya, can we sit?” James asked as they popped their head into the very last carriage, spotting only two people sat down.

“Sure, do sit!” Said one of the two boys. To Remus, he looked rather frightening. He had dark hair and fair skin, giving off a strongly powerful vibe.

“I’m James. James Potter.” James introduced himself, sitting down beside the black-haired boy.

“Sirius Black.” The boy responded, arching an eyebrow when James jumped slightly. “I’m nothing like my family, James Potter, try not to be too frightened.”

“No, of course. Sorry, my family and yours hasn’t the greatest history.” James apologised.

“Peter Pettigrew.” The other, slightly smaller boy piped up, a warm smile on his face.

“Ah, Pettigrew! My mother’s good friends with yours, I believe.” James nodded excitedly, pushing up his glasses.

The other three boys looked at Remus expectantly and he hurriedly introduced himself. “I’m Remus, Remus Lupin.”

“Do you two know each other?” Sirius asked, looking between Remus and James.

“No, we’ve just met on the platform. What about you?” James answered.

Remus observed the conversation as it continued, not feeling as if he wanted to contribute before he knew what sort of people they were. So far, it was very clear that they were all posh, middle class boys. He could tell by the high-pitched, Kensington accents that were making him rather self conscious of his own rough-sounding voice.

“You’re rather quiet, aren’t you?” Sirius said to Remus suddenly as James and Peter began an enthusiastic conversation about something called quidditch.

"Tryna avoid gettin’ beaten to death by poshos on my first day. Wouldn’t wanna say nothing wrong.” Remus told him embarrassedly.

“You wouldn’t want to say _anything_.” Sirius corrected him. “It’s a–“

“Double negative. Well aware. Don’t think just ‘cause I’m from somewhere other than bloody Buckingham Palace, I don’t know _nothing_. ‘Cause I do. I’m not thick.” Remus snapped.

“I’m sorry.” Sirius apologised notably sincerely. “I don’t mean to be a twat. Just so you know, you’re definitely not going to get beaten up here. Especially not with me around.” He grinned.

“What’s that mean?” Remus asked suspiciously.

“We’ll keep you safe.” Sirius’s tone was lighthearted but he had a solemn expression.

“From what?”

“Your parents are muggles, is that right?” Sirius asked.

“What on earth’s a muggle?” Remus realised he’d have to be asking a lot of questions; he knew next to nothing about wizards.

“Non-wizard,” Sirius said.

“Ah, right. Mum was one of them then, dad was a wizard,” Remus said simply.

“Some people around here– well– they don’t like muggles and wizards with muggle parents. My family, for example, despise them. But I’m nothing like them,” Sirius explained.

He looked up to see James and Peter watching his and Remus’s conversation. James gave him an approving nod and Peter smiled encouragingly. Remus said nothing, but was internally panicking quite a bit– he knew he had to keep his lycanthropy secret, but no-one had told him he could be hated simply for being born to non-magical parents. Hogwarts would be quite a struggle, after all. Back home at Bowley’s, no one knew him well enough or cared enough to wonder where he would go every month and he’d liked that very much. Here, however, there would be dormitories and friends. He knew he’d simply have to distance himself from them quite a bit but for now, for now he could enjoy their company.

“So, what house do you think you’ll be in?” James asked the others excitedly, yanking Remus from his thoughts.”I’m Gryffindor for sure, both my parents were in it, and a good portion of my family tree.”

“Houses?” Remus inquired, starting to get embarrassed at how many questions he was asking.

“You’ll get sorted into a house and have lessons with them and stuff. Essentially, you’ve got Gryffindor for the brave; Hufflepuff for softies; Ravenclaw for clever kids and Slytherin for criminals,” James summarised for him.

“I’ll be in Hufflepuff, knowing my luck,” said Peter glumly.

“I just hope I’m not in Slytherin,” Sirius added.

Remus was certain he’d simply be turned away. None of the houses seemed to value qualities he possessed. Slytherin seemed to be the most probable, but he wasn’t sure if being a dark creature necessarily made him a criminal, and there was no way he could ask his newfound friends.

The mystery would simply have to solve itself once he arrived. 


	2. First Year, Part One

The first time Remus saw Hogwarts Castle, he was certain he stopped breathing for an entire minute. He wouldn’t describe himself as a particularly artistic person, nor would he say he’d ever had any interest in art whatsoever. This, however, was something very different. The castle was a work of art. He felt immensely vulnerable; it stood over him in all its glory and magnificence and yet, somehow, Remus felt impossibly safe.

“Blimey,” said Peter, voicing all their thoughts rather efficiently.

The boat they sat in eventually made it right to the castle and the boys followed the other first years into the Great Hall, ready to be sorted. The sorting, James told the others, consisted of placing an old hat on your head and awaiting its decision as to which house you will spend the next seven years in. Truthfully, it was all round a nerve-wracking experience.

 

“Potter, James,” called a stern-looking woman who had introduced herself as Professor McGonagall. Remus had almost rolled his eyes at the use of ‘professor.’ Would he also become a posh-o like the rest of them?

James sauntered up to the Hat, radiating confidence, and allowed it to be placed on his head. It was barely there for five seconds before it cried out “Gryffindor!”  
Beaming, James made his way over to the Gryffindor table, met with loud applause and claps on his back.

After that, several other students were sorted into the four houses and the line was shortening rapidly. Remus felt his heart thudding in his chest and scolded himself silently for being so nervous. Peter had got into Gryffindor alongside James and it had him rather worried about being separated from the first people he believed he could someday call friends, even if it was better for them to not associate with him.

“Lupin, Remus!”

Remus nearly threw up right there. He walked over to the Hat, cautiously placing it on his head and waiting for its decision.

“Werewolf, eh?” It said to Remus, who nearly screamed aloud before realising the Hat was not speaking to the whole room but was, in fact, inside his head.

“You have the ambition of a Slytherin, but the blind courage of a Gryffindor. What do you reckon?”

Gryffindor, Remus thought. It had to be Gryffindor.

“Very well, boy. Off you go to Gryffindor!” It shouted the last word to the hall, met with applause from the Gryffindor table. Remus scurried over to sit with his new friends, smiling gratefully as they moved along to let him sit.

He turned back in time to see Sirius with the Hat on his head, his eyes screwed shut and his fists clenched. Almost three minutes went by before the Hat shouted “Gryffindor!” The hall was silent. Sirius stood up shakily, looking completely dumbfounded. At last, Remus, feeling very bad for Sirius, began to clap and cheer. Sirius smiled at him gratefully. Thankfully, the rest of the house followed suit.

As the last of the students were sorted, the hall began to fall into restlessness, quickly turning to Sirius’s sorting as a conversation topic. He looked rather disgruntled at this, rolling his eyes as he heard someone whisper-shout about his family ordering his execution.

“What’s the big deal?” Remus asked, finally, turning away from the sorting of Robin Jones.

Peter raised an eyebrow. “Remus, mate. You ought to get a wizarding history book, or something.”

“As if I care ‘bout wizardin’ ‘istory,” Remus snarled.

“Don’t blame ya! Wait ‘til ya study history of magic. Me da’ is a historian, too. Gotta hear all about it at home!” Said another boy at their table.

“Who’re you, then?” Remus asked, taken aback by the boy’s strong accent. He couldn’t quite differentiate between Irish, Scottish and Welsh accents and was having a hard time figuring it out.

“John Henderson, nice ta meet ya! Am a second year, you’ve just come in, right?” He said in an enthusiastic tone.

“Remus Lupin,” Remus introduced himself quickly and then allowed the others to introduce themselves as well.

The sorting finally drew to a close and Albus Dumbledore stood up from his seat to address the hall. Remus felt rather odd seeing him in such a powerful position when he’d been sitting in a tattered chair across from him not two weeks ago. Dumbledore was clearly a more important figure than Remus had anticipated.

He began to speak, “Good evening, Hogwarts. To our new students, welcome. To our old students, welcome back. For our fifth and seventh years, this will be one of the most important years of your school lives; remember to keep atop your studies and I wish you the best of luck on your OWLs and NEWTs. It is also, however, important for me to remind you all that, during these dark times, our main priority is that we must continue to be more united than ever.”

The atmosphere in the room rapidly changed. Remus caught Sirius’s eye but he just shook his head and looked back at Dumbledore. Dumbledore didn’t seem anything like the eccentric and kindly old man Remus had met two weeks ago; he was grave and serious, worry etched into the lines of his face.

“There is no power in division, but there is power in unity and togetherness. If we hold our values close, no-one can take that away from us. Our differences are what make us human, and we must accept and appreciate the humanity of every person in this room. If we turn against one another, we will collapse. If we stand together, we will prevail.”

An odd feeling settled over the hall. Remus felt he was being protected by some powerful force, although he had no idea what he was being protected from. He knew the staff talked about Vietnam back at Bowley’s, sometimes, but he didn’t think anything like that could affect the wizarding world.

“As usual,” Dumbledore continued, “Your prefects will take you to your dormitories, first years. Please, first years, take your brooms to Madam Hooch before lessons begin— I assure you, she will keep them safe. Anyone wishing to partake in troublesome behaviour, please consult the list of banned items on Mr Filch’s door— I believe it’s grown a foot since last year. To all our students, good luck and goodnight. Wait for your head of house to dismiss you, please.”

With that, he sat back down and the silence in the hall was broken.

“What’s all that ‘bout, then?” Remus asked the others, finally.

The other three were visibly uncomfortable but, eventually, Sirius decided to speak up.

“There’s– there are bad people out there. You know, I told you about them hating muggles? Well, they’re obsessed with the idea of cleansing the wizarding world, or something.” Sirius squirmed as he attempted to explain it.

“There’s a bloody war goin’ on?”

The other three nodded, still looking very uncomfortable. Just then, a voice called out, “First years with me, please, follow me!”

The boys got up from the table and followed the tall, gangly boy with a list in his hand.

“Hi, I’m the fifth year Gryffindor Prefect, Alfred Thomas. Fun fact number one: you can tell I’m a fifth year because I have five black stitches on my tie– you get a new one at the start of every year, and they’re impossible to remove. Trust me— I’ve tried.” He smiled at the boys and opened his mouth to talk again when his fellow prefect interrupted him.

“Thomas! Stop making friends with first years and do your job!” She shrieked, making the boys jump slightly.

“And that’s my partner, Shrieking Charlotte,” he whispered to them as he led them up to the dormitories.

“This is the entrance to the Gryffindor Tower, ladies and gentlemen. Whilst you are at Hogwarts, this will be your home— treat it with respect, please,” Thomas said to a small crowd of first years in front of him as they reached a portrait of a rather fat lady.

Upon closer inspection, Remus realised that the painting was moving and could hardly be surprised; he was going to see a lot stranger things than moving— and talking, apparently— paintings.

“The password this year is _novus_ , which— fun fact number two— is latin for–“

“New! It’s where the word novice comes from!” A short red-haired girl piped up.

“Correct! Ten points to—” Thomas began.

“Thomas, no!” Shrieking Charlotte shrieked. “Lead your boys up to the dorms and then we have to meet with McGonagall.” She turned to the fat lady, “ _Novus_.”

The painting swung open like a door, much to the amusement of Remus. It seemed rather unnecessary to have their dormitory be in a tower hidden behind a painting. It was all very fairytale-esque, but then again, he was in a school for magic.

  
“Here we are, lads! Potter, Pettigrew, Black and Lupin in here.” Thomas pointed to the door to their left. “Longbottom and Wilson, you’re just down there. Treat your dorms well, please. They’ll be your home for the next seven years. All the best stories are born in this very room. Five years from now, you’ll tell the story of how you all become best friends and this dorm will be a main character. Good luck, boys. Time flies, don’t waste it.” He finished his speech with a grin and walked back down the stairs, leaving the boys to enter their dormitories.

The others seemed oddly scared to go into the room so Remus stepped forward with a sigh and saw his new home for the first time.

“They really went all out, huh?” He said, stepping aside to let the others in.

“It’s alright. Bit plain,” James commented.

“Shut it, knob. I’m well chuffed.” Remus walked over to the bed furthest from the door, noticing his luggage on it.

“No need to be rude,” James replied, frowning.  
“Just a bit a’ banter. Don’t mean no harm,” Remus explained, rather annoyed at the other boy’s inability to take his words as a joke and nothing more.

“Looks like our beds are picked?” Peter said in a questioning tone.

“Is it? Funny, I ‘adn’t noticed.” Remus rolled his eyes playfully, then stopped as he observed Peter’s hurt expression. “Christ! If ya can’t take the joke, least pick a fight? Dunno how I’m gonna survive ‘ere, I’ll tell ya that.”

“Christ?” Sirius asked, finally adding to the odd conversation.

Remus sighed. “Forget I said anythin’. Bathroom.” With that, he walked across the room and opened the bathroom door.

For a moment, Remus wondered whether he’d entered heaven by mistake. He’d never seen such a large, clean and white bathroom in his life. The luxury would take some getting used to.

He removed his clothes carefully, hissing as they made contact with his most recent injury. Antiseptic and bandages hardly helped. Briefly, he wondered how he’d be able to hide his scars and cuts from his new roommates, but he quickly dismissed that thought. He would just have to be careful.

 

“Rise and shine, boys!” Called the insufferably high-pitched voice of James Potter at what could not be any later than six in the morning.

All three sleeping boys groaned in unison and managed to synchronise their poorly aimed pillow throws.

“Not one of those pillows touched me. Now, get up. This castle is simply begging to be explored,” James told them, smiling far too much for this time of day.

Remus growled quietly, angry at the best sleep of his entire life being interrupted. He jumped out of bed, armed with a pillow, and shoved James back onto his bed. “Piss off, Potter. I’m sleeping.”

James accepted his fate, slightly afraid, and snuggled back into his sheets, allowing Remus to dive back into his own bed. The peace did not last long.

“Well, _now_ I can’t get back to sleep!” Peter groaned. “Curse you, James Potter.”

  
“Shut _up_ , Peter! I was just falling back asleep,” Sirius cried, finally sitting up.

“This can’t become an ‘abit, Potter. I’ll allow it for today, but you can’t _ever_ wake me like that again.” Remus gave up, getting out of bed and making his way over to the bathroom.

“I’ll have to strongly agree with Remus here, James. That was awful,” Sirius added.

“That’s Lupin to you.” Remus shut the bathroom door.

“Slight overreaction,” James observed.

“Never get between a boy and his sleep,” Peter said wisely.

  
Remus showered and brushed his teeth angrily. Yesterday had been the best and worst day of his life, he surely deserved some rest. He was not at all used to these sorts of boys. Boys who woke up before eleven voluntarily; made an effort to be friendly with the weird kid and were very, annoyingly, the nicest people Remus felt he’d ever meet. It terrified him to think about how badly he wanted and needed these boys as his friends. Back in Bowley’s, he had no one he’d call a friend. The boys were not there to be social and make friends, they were there to steal cigarettes and cheap vodka from the corner shop and beat each other half to death for no apparent reason. Here, however, the boys wanted to learn and make their lifelong friends. It truly was a change of scenery.

“Hey, mate! Hurry up in there!” Peter shouted.

Remus sighed and reluctantly unlocked the bathroom to let himself out.

“All good?” Peter asked warily.

“All good,” Remus replied with a small smile. He had known he would get on with Peter from the beginning. He found the other boys rather insufferable, but Peter was nice enough.

  
After everyone had finished preparing for their first day of lessons, they made their way down to the Great Hall for breakfast. All four boys were silent as they walked, each dreading something different.

James was excited to finally start learning magic properly, after being around it his whole life. However, there was a certain amount of fear to do with the social aspect of Hogwarts. One thing James prided himself on was his spectacular judgement. When he met someone, he immediately knew if he liked them and, more often than not, if he liked someone right away, it meant they were a good person. For the first time in his life, he was not entirely sure whether he liked or disliked someone. Remus Lupin was a very strange boy, but seemed nice enough. James hoped he turned out alright; he wanted the boys to be good friends, seeing as they’d live together for the next seven years.

Sirius had some different fears. When he walked into the Great Hall, he would have to face his family, sneering at him from the Slytherin table. He’d have to sit at the Gryffindor table and most likely open a howler from his mother, reiterating just how much of a disappointment and failure he was. The thought of seeing them again during the holidays was more than enough to forget any ideas he’d had about eating a nice breakfast and enjoying his first day away from them. He just hoped his new friends wouldn’t be put off by the inevitable howlers to come.

Peter was positively terrified, despite, subjectively, having the least to worry about. For the longest time, Peter’s mother had believed her only son was non-magical, which she had been extremely grateful for. She did her best to raise her son in a non-magical environment, which simply rendered Peter completely useless and stupid upon entering a magical environment such as Hogwarts. Of course, to Peter’s mother, she was only protecting Peter and keeping him safe, but to Peter, she had ruined his life. He knew he’d be terrible in lessons and far behind all his friends. The thought was horrible.

Remus was more concerned than scared. He had somehow found himself with three friends and very big secret to keep. The full moon was in three days and he could already feel himself getting jittery and irritable. He knew he was a harmless comment away from wringing someone’s neck. On top of that, he would have to do lessons today, and would not understand a thing. In Bowley’s, he hardly attended lessons, or never listened when he did. As a result, he was undeniably thick and would certainly be right at the bottom of every class.

At last, the four boys reached the Great Hall. Simultaneously, they inhaled deeply, then entered the hall. The first thing Sirius noticed was the ceiling— it was grey and cloudy, reflecting the outside weather. Perfect, he thought.

“Well, would ya look at that? They’ve only gone and removed the bloody roof!” Remus exclaimed, looking at the ceiling as they all found seats at the Gryffindor table.

“No, no. It’s charmed to reflect the outside weather all the time!” Piped up a red-haired girl Remus recognised from the Sorting. “I’m Lily Evans,” she said when Remus showed no sign up replying.

“Remus Lupin,” he grunted back.

“Remus? That’s an interesting name. I’m pretty sure it’s from—”

“It’s so early. Stop teachin’ me stuff,” he replied, then jumped back into the boys’ conversation.

“Where are you from, Remus?” Lily asked, sitting down beside him and the other boys.

“Lime ‘ouse, in London. Sorta near Whitechapel. Y’know? Jack the Ripper and all,” Remus told her. He paused before adding, “And you?”

“Kilburn! It’s so lovely, I’m missing it. How do you know about Jack the Ripper, though? Are you muggle-born?” She asked, getting more excited with each word.  
“Um.” He glanced at Sirius, unsure of what to say. Sirius gave him a slight nod, and Remus looked back at Lily. “Sorta. Mum was a muggle, dad was a wizard. Was raised by muggles, though. Yaself?”

“I’m muggle-born! It’s so lovely to meet someone like me, how wonderful! Remus, we shall be great friends!” She exclaimed, clearly excited.

Remus smiled uncomfortably, then attempted to rejoin the boys’ conversation.

“Ooh, who’s your girlfriend, Remus?” James waggled his eyebrows.

“Piss off, Potter.” Remus flung a piece of scrambled egg at him with a chuckle.

“Black, Evans, Lupin, Potter, Pettigrew. Your schedules.” Professor McGonagall flicked her wand, sending each schedule to its rightful owner. “Please make your way to your first lesson immediately after breakfast.” She cast one final glare at Peter, misaimed scrambled egg in his hair, and left.

“We’ve got transfiguration with her first. Spiffing,” Peter informed them, a disgruntled look settling over his features.  
“Transfiguration is going to be fun, cheer up, Pete.” James pat him on the back awkwardly.

“Right, I’m ‘boutta to take a wild guess ‘ere, an’ say transfiguration is transformin’ stuff into other stuff,” Remus said, breaking the silence.

“Right on, mate. Rats into cups. People into animals,” Sirius explained.

“People into animals?” Peter asked, alarmed.

“Yep!” James shouted excitedly.

“Not necessarily, Peter, was it? There’s a long and complex process to make yourself turn into an animal at will,” Lily injected.

“Well, no one _really_ asked you, carrot-head,” James said to her, sticking out his tongue.

Lily stood up, glared at James and swiftly left the Great Hall. Remus held in a laugh as he turned to see James’ expression. The boy looked heartbroken.

“Cheer up, Jamesie, you’ll get her.” Sirius pat him on the back.

“Ew. Gross.” James shuddered dramatically. “Time for transfig, methinks.”

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this took so long & sorry it's not very good. leave us a comment if you enjoyed it anyway.


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